Kutter

Crawford

The procedure involved reconstruction of the stabilizing sheath of the extensor carpi ulnaris in his right wrist. There isn’t an official return timeline from the Red Sox at the moment, but Crawford has plenty of time to be ready for next spring. He wound up missing the entire 2025 campaign due to knee and wrist issues.

That operation will likely cost Crawford the remainder of the 2025 season, according to Cora. The right-hander also dealt with a knee issue earlier in the campaign, but it’s the wrist operation that will all but assuredly cost him the remainder of this year. Crawford will battle for a starting gig in 2026, assuming he’s ready to roll when that season begins.

Crawford is set to undergo further tests after experiencing more wrist issues. The 29-year-old has been on the shelf since spring training and doesn’t appear close at all to making it back to Boston’s pitching mix following this latest setback.

Crawford, 29, has dealt with knee and wrist issues, but it’s the latter that’s given him the most trouble as of late. The right-hander will likely need to throw several bullpens before going on a rehab assignment, and then could be an option for Boston near/after the All-Star break.

Crawford is now back to just playing catch after his wrist didn’t respond well to increasing intensity with bullpens. The right-hander is also coming back from a knee injury as well. There is no timeline for his return at this point.

Crawford was on the precipice of kicking off a rehab assignment before a relatively minor right wrist issue shut down his throwing program for a couple days. He should start building back up at some point this week.

Crawford was pulled off a minor league rehab assignment earlier this week to undergo further testing, which didn’t reveal any structural issues. It doesn’t sound like a massive concern, but the Red Sox are likely going to wait until the inflammation subsides before letting him pitch in minor league contests. The 29-year-old righty has been working his way back from a knee issue that bothered him down the stretch last year.

Crawford’s rehab assignment, which was expected to begin this week, isn’t happening. He’s headed back to Boston to undergo further testing. The only positive here is that the new issue is unrelated to the knee issues he’s been battling since last year. There should be an update on his status at some point later this week.

Crawford has been out all season while battling a knee injury that first popped up last season. The Red Sox are unlikely to rush him back, given the length of his injury, but Crawford could potentially be ready for big league innings by early July. As of now, the Red Sox claim that Crawford will remain a starting pitcher, but he has experience out of the bullpen as well, so if Richard Fitts or Brayan Bello pitch well enough to remain in the rotation, Crawford could help the team as a reliever.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said the team is keeping Crawford on a five-day schedule as they prepare him to return to the big league roster. That would seem to indicate that they are preparing him to return as a starter, but things could change over the next few weeks. If Crawford’s four-inning live batting practice goes well this week, we could see him begin a rehab assignment next week. He has not pitched any competitive innings at all this year, so his rehab stint would likely be on the longer end, which would put him on track for a record in late June or early July.